Gr.—l

50

Nelson City Reserves. Originally reserved in 1842 in accordance with London prospectus of a. r. p. a. r. p. 1841 : 100 town acres .. .. .. .. .. .. 100 0 0 Withdrawn in 1848 .. .. .. .. .. .. 47 0 0 Increase in area on subsequent survey in accordance with the plan to remodel the Nelson Township .. .. .. .. .. 0 1 39 Loss of area on exchange .. .. .. .. .. 100 Loss of area due to river erosion .. .. .. ... 0 2 10 Miscellaneous sales .. .. .. .. .. .. 1 234 Taken under Public Works Act, 1908 .. .. .. 1 229 Balance remaining in 1929 .. .. .. 48 2 6 100 1 39 100 1 39 Nelson Country Reserves. Area proposed to be reserved in accordance with the London prospectus of 1841—100 suburban sections of 50 acres each, 5,000 acres ; 100 rural sections of 150 acres a. r. p. each, 15,000 acres .. .. .. .. .. .. . . 20,000 0 0 Area awarded by Commissioner Spain in 1845 .. .. .. .. 15,000 0 0 Area actually reserved in 1842 .. .. . . .. .. .. 5,000 0 0 Area brought under provisions of Native Reserves Act, 1856 .. .. 50 0 0 Increases on subsequent surveys.. .. .. .. .. .. 11128 A. r. p. Grant to Bishop of New Zealand .. .. .. .. 918 0 5 Vested in beneficial owners .. .. .. .. .. 150 0 0 Awarded to individual tribes .. .. .. .. .. 985 0 9 Miscellaneous sales .. .. .. .. . . . . 14 3 20 Balance remaining in 1929 .. .. .. . . . . 3,093 2 14 5,161 2 8 5,161 2 8 Note. —The rural lands—loo sections of 150 acres each —which were proposed to be set aside for the benefit of the Natives in accordance with the original plan of the Nelson Settlement were never actually reserved. EXPLANATORY NOTE. As far as the writer is aware, no previous attempt has ever been made to place on record a statement showing —(1) The total reserves set aside by the New Zealand Company in accordance with their original scheme of settlement for Wellington and Nelson ; (2) a return of all the reserves originally set aside which have been taken out of the " tenths " by awards, endowments, grants, sales, and exchanges between the years 1840 and 1873 ; (3) a balance of the reserves remaining in 1873 reconciled with Schedule D of the Native Reserves Act, 1873 —in other words (to use an accountancy term) a " reconciliation statement " balancing the areas of the reserves remaining in 1873 with the areas originallv reserved in 1840 and 1842, less the numerous transactions which took place between 1840 and 1873. Some idea of the magnitude of the task may be gained when it is stated that to obtain the desired information it has been necessary to make an exhaustive search of the records of the Native Trust Office, the Lands and Deeds Office, the Lands and Survey Office, and innumerable official documents and returns contained in the General Assembly and Turnbull Libraries. Many returns of lands known as Native reserves are contained in the Appendices to the Journals of the House of Representatives covering the period under review, and as far as the South Island is concerned these are more or less complete. The available information regarding the Wellington reserves, however, is not so satisfactory, and it is not incorrect to say that no two returns actually agree. The returns dealing with the McCleverty awards alone are misleading, and Commissioners who administered the Wellington reserves prior to 1873 were apt to show any doubtful lands as grants under this heading. Some of the many difficulties encountered in attempting to reconcile the " tenths " may be summarized as follows :— • (1) Certain reserves marked out on the Company's plans did not agree with the reserves shown on the official plans attached to the Crown grants. (2) The areas of the reserves originally set aside by the Company were found on subsequent survey to vary considerably. (3) Grants made out of the " tenths " by Sir George Grey to individual Natives were in some cases not recorded. (4) Under the deeds system, Crown grants were issued on requisitions from the Crown Lands Office. In some instances awards were apparently made prior to the issue of the Crown grant, the records of which are to-day not in existence. (5) The McCleverty awards are vague as to descriptions, and contain large areas outside the scheme of the reserved " tenths." (6) In some cases sections awarded by Colonel McCleverty were subsequently administered by Commissioners for various reasons, and were confused with actual reserves. (7) Many early returns deal with the same land twice, and confuse actual awards made from the " tenths " with subsequent dealings by the Natives to whom the original awards were made.

Approximate Cost of Paper.—Preparation, not given ; printing (465 copies), £55.

Authority : W. A. G. Skinmb, Government Printer, Wellington.—l 929.

Price Is. 3(2.1